Thirty-Six Hospitals do not meet ‘Minimum Operations’ Requirement

Thirty-six hospitals in the Netherlands have not met the minimum requirements for the number of operations they carried out in 2012. This was found by Dutch broadcaster RTL. Hospitals have to carry out at least a certain number of specific operations because otherwise patients risk complications. Minister of Health Edith Schippers said that these hospitals will have to stop carrying out these operations if they cannot prove that this year they will meet the required minimum. www.google.co.il/?gws_rd=cr#q=volkskrant,+ziekenhuizen+halen+de+norm+niet&tbm=nws

Major Amsterdam Public Recreation Area becomes Public Toilet

The Amsterdam Forest (Amsterdamse Bos) is the major recreation area of Amsterdam. Recently after a festival was held, tens of eco-toilets used by the thousands of participants were illegally emptied in the forest. Herbert Raat, an Alderman of the Amsterdam suburb Amstelveen said, that he had never experienced such a thing and added that it was “a scandal.” www.spitsnieuws.nl/archives/binnenland/2013/08/amsterdamse-bos-wordt-openbaar-toilet

At Least 42 Students to be Prosecuted for Theft of Exams

At least 42 students will be prosecuted for the stealing of final high school exams or the distribution of them. This was announced by the prosecution in Rotterdam. Of the 42 students, 11 are prosecuted for the actual theft. Eight students of the Ibn Ghadoun school in Rotterdam who are suspected of the theft will not receive their diplomas. In total, at that school, 27 different exams were stolen. www.volkskrant.nl/vk/nl/13568/Eindexamenfraude/article/detail/3496784/2013/08/22/Verdachten-Ibn-Ghaldoun-krijgen-geen-diploma.dhtml

Business Leader: Government Guilty for Economic Recession

The government is guilty for the economic recession in the Netherlands. This was said by Dick Boer, Chief Executive of the leading Dutch retailer Ahold. He said that the cabinet doesn’t provide any perspective to the consumer, burdening him all the time with further charges. Therefore, there is no public confidence and consumers don’t spend their money. Boer is the first Dutch top executive to link the Dutch economic crisis to the government policy. www.ad.nl/ad/nl/5597/Economie/article/detail/3497122/2013/08/23/AH-topman-Crisis-is-de-schuld-van-kabinet-Rutte.dhtml

Major Insurer Sends Data on Investments of its Clients to Wrong Addresses

Data of thousands of clients with an investment account at the largest Dutch insurer Aegon have been sent to individual clients. The NOS broadcasting unit received a package with an overview of client accounts from a wrong addressee because the company didn’t make any effort to get this highly confidential information back. All in all, 30 such packages of which 5 have not yet been found. www.volkskrant.nl/vk/nl/2686/Binnenland/article/detail/3497438/2013/08/23/Gegevens-duizenden-Aegon-klanten-op-straat.dhtml

Minister: Protect Dutch Workers against Invasion from Eastern Europe

Dutch Minister of Social Affairs and Deputy Prime Minister Lodewijk Asscher and English publicist David Goodhart, have jointly written an article in which they claim that the European Union has to deal with the extreme problems the Free Movement of Workers in Europe cause. The work and income of European workers is threatened by Eastern European newcomers who are used to much lower salaries and do not yet know the welfare state. In the past, Asscher has written to the Dutch Parliament: “There are limits to what a society can tolerate. The absorption capacity is not unlimited. In order to prevent unlimited immigration, a restrictive migration policy is necessary also insofar as new countries which join the EU are concerned.” www.volkskrant.nl/vk/nl/2686/Binnenland/article/detail/3493705/2013/08/17/Asscher-bescherm-Nederlandse-werknemers-tegen-invasie-Oost-Europa.dhtml

Netherlands Support Cocaine-Legalizing Bolivia

Tens of millions of Dutch tax money are being given annually as development aid to Bolivia. Recently, Bolivian President Evo Morales decided to increase the production of coca leaves – the raw material of cocaine - and also to increase its production. The Ministry for Development Aid will provide 15 million Euros until the end of 2014 to Bolivia. Dutch NGOs, which are subsidized by the Dutch government, spent a multitude of this amount on development aid in Bolivia. www.spitsnieuws.nl/archives/buitenland/2013/08/nl-belastingcentjes-naar-coca%C3%AFneland

Dutch Elderly and Sick Care Institutions Largely Fail

The Nieuwsuur program reported that most of the inspected elderly and sick care institutions do not meet the minimum norms. This resulted from inspections by the Inspectorate for Health (IGZ) in the past six months. Of the 44 institutions visited, two thirds didn’t meet the minimum norm. It also showed how 4 employees of the Novo Center in Onnen crushed a 44 year old handicapped woman to death. www.telegraaf.nl/binnenland/21787891/__Gruwelen_in_gehandicaptenzorg__.html

Subsidiary of Norwegian Firm Hid Major Leaks

It has now become known that the highly controversial Dutch subsidiary of the Norwegian oil tank firm, Odfjell had not reported a major leak in 2009. Thousands of liters of methanol were leaked. A large part of the firm’s activities were closed upon order of authorities in 2012 due to insufficient safety measures. In ten year’s time, there had been 64 incidents. The tanks have not been checked for 30 years. www.volkskrant.nl/vk/nl/2686/Binnenland/article/detail/3486126/2013/08/02/Odfjell-onderzoekt-verzwijgen-incidenten.dhtml

Nobel Prize Winning Economist: Belgium is Governed Better Financially than the Netherlands

Nobel Prize winning U.S Economist Paul Krugman says that despite problems resulting from its language crisis, Belgium has been governed better financially in recent years than the Netherlands. As far as the latter is concerned he says: “In great harmony only wrong things have been done.” Krugman believes that budget cutting in The Netherlands destroys the Dutch economy. http://www.telegraaf.nl/dft/21806885/___Belgie_verslaat_Nederland___.html

Merger Causes Chaos in Regional Prosecution Offices

There are malfunctions in the administration of the Prosecution in Utrecht since it has been merged with the office in Lelystad. The prosecutors in Lelystad sent summons to Utrecht which are not sent out to the accused or far too late. As a result a court case against a 86 year old physician had to be delayed. He was accused of making pictures of his clients’ sex parts. There are also similar problems in other merged prosecutor offices. http://www.telegraaf.nl/binnenland/21805998/__Chaos_OM_door_fusie__.html

Dutch Srebrenica Soldiers want Compensation

Tens of Dutch soldiers who were part of the Dutch U.N. Battalion in Srebrenica in 1995, want compensation from the Dutch Ministry of Defense for the psychological damage they incurred. A few days ago, the government agreed, after 10 years of court cases, to pay compensation for one of the soldiers. He was 19 years old when he was stationed in Srebrenica and he had been shot at, kidnapped and was a witness of the killing of another soldier. A few years later, he held the ministry of defense responsible because it didn’t offer any psychiatric care to the soldiers. The highest legal, military authority agreed earlier this year that it had taken “insufficient measures” to prevent post-traumatic stress syndrome (PTSS).

www.volkskrant.nl/vk/nl/2686/2013/article/print/detail/3491518/Tientallen-oud-Dutchbatters-willen-schadevergoeding.dhtml

Another Dutch Jihadist Killed in Syria

 Another Dutch Jihadist, Saddik Shaah has been killed in Syria. His family has confirmed his death. Approximately 100 Dutch Muslims departed to Syria to fight with the rebels. Three others were killed earlier.
www.volkskrant.nl/vk/nl/2668/Buitenland/article/detail/3490977/2013/08/12/Nederlandse-jihadstrijder-omgekomen-in-Syrie.dhtml

Tax Authorities Lose over 1 Billion Euro a Year as Dutchmen fill up Their Tanks Abroad

The Dutch authorities lose over 1 billion Euro a year because many Dutchmen who live close to the German or Belgian borders fill up their gasoline tanks in these countries because it is so much cheaper there. This was published by Bovag and Nove – two professional organizations. At present already 53 percent of those who live less than 20 kilometers from the borders fill up abroad. A further increase in Dutch excise tax would mean that two-thirds will fill up abroad. The authorities not only lose 820 million Euro of excise tax, but also 344 million Euro of added value tax. Furthermore, thousands of Dutch jobs in the industry are at risk. www.telegraaf.nl/overgeld/consument/21795999/___Tanken_over_grens_kost_schatkist_miljard___.html

All Dutch Embassy Employees have left Yemen

The Dutch Foreign Office has announced that the Dutch Embassy in Yemen is a potential terrorist target. Earlier the ministry had said that this was not the case. By now, all employees of the embassy have left the country. The ministry has also called upon the 40 Dutchmen in Yemen to leave the country. The Dutch Coordinator of the Fight against Terrorism and Security will not raise the level of alarm in the Netherlands. It is already at the one below the highest level. www.trouw.nl/tr/nl/4492/Nederland/article/detail/3488768/2013/08/07/BuZa-Nederlandse-ambassade-Jemen-potentieel-doelwit-aanslag.dhtml

Dutch Mobile Phone Calls most Expensive in Europe

Calling one minute from a mobile phone in the Netherlands is more expensive than anywhere else in Europe. This was published by the European Commission. A minute phoning in the Netherlands costs 14.7 Eurocent. In Lithuania it costs 1.9 Eurocent, whereas the European average is 9.1 Eurocent. The EU observes that the differences can not be explained by differences in quality, cost or purchase power of consumers. www.volkskrant.nl/vk/nl/2680/Economie/article/detail/3487892/2013/08/06/Minuut-mobiel-bellen-in-Nederland-duurste.dhtml

Increase in Quarrels between neighbors

Neighborhood mediators have to increasingly in conflicts between neighbors. This was published by the Center for the Prevention of criminality and Safety. One reason is that people with psychological problems remain longer and more independently at their homes. In 2012 the mediators intervened 10 000 times. In 2011 there were 9 000 such interventions. www.ad.nl/ad/nl/1012/Nederland/article/detail/3487714/2013/08/06/Aantal-burenruzies-stijgt-flink.dhtml

Socialist Party Concerned about Wire-Tapping of Parliamentarians

Parliamentarian Ronald van Raak of the left wing Socialist Party has put parliamentary questions to Minister of Interior Ronald Plasterk (Labor) whether the telecom Company Vodafone can still be used. He wants to be sure that it doesn’t pass information from conversations of parliamentarians to foreign secret services. He said that earlier Vodafone and other companies have helped the British Secret Service in wiretapping. www.volkskrant.nl/vk/nl/2686/Binnenland/article/detail/3486558/2013/08/03/SP-bezorgd-om-afluisteren-Kamerleden.dhtml

Dutch Yemen Embassy Closed out of Fear

The Dutch Embassy in Yemen will be closed in the coming days due to security fears. The American Embassy there will also be closed because it has been threatened. The closure of the Dutch Embassy which employs 6 Dutchmen and 15 local workers has not received such threats. Yet the Dutch government thinks that if several other Western embassies are closed, it may become a target.

http://www.volkskrant.nl/vk/nl/2664/Nieuws/article/detail/3486678/2013/08/03/Ook-Nederland-sluit-ambassade-Jemen.dhtml

Prostitutes’ Prices Hit by Crisis

Geisha, the sector organization of prostitutes said that the economic crisis is forcing prostitutes to lower prices and accept dubious sexual practices. Ilonka Stakelborough of Geisha told the daily Algemeen Dagblad that the trend is apparent in the main cities and some prostitutes can no longer pay the rent fees for their rooms. Until recently, the minimum price was 50 Euro, but in The Hague and Amsterdam it has come down to as low as 20 Euro.

http://www.dutchnews.nl/news/archives/2013/07/prostitutes_prices_hit_by_cris.php